1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle planning support system and, more particularly, to a vehicle planning support system for supporting vehicle planning using vehicle models displayed on a screen.
2. Conventional Art
In vehicle development, there is normally a vehicle planning process to consider vehicle packaging and the like, followed by a move to specific design of detailed parts, production drawings, and the like. In the past, vehicle planning entailed the generating of multiple drawings showing overviews of the vehicle, and vehicle planning was conducted based on such drawings. Planned vehicles were also evaluated by generating clay models or mockups, or by fabricating prototype vehicles. On the other hand, the present applicant has proposed a simulation device for providing the evaluator with a simulated experience to riding the vehicle in order to evaluate vehicle characteristics (JP H07-271289). Also, the present applicant has proposed planning support programs and the like which support vehicle planning by variably displaying on a screen a plurality of models relating to vehicle exterior shape, interior space, and the like (e.g., JP 2004-042747).
However, the aforementioned drawing-based vehicle planning method required drafting a large number of drawings in order to evaluate various shapes and packages, etc., and also required redrafting drawings from scratch when points of the design were changed. It was also difficult for vehicle planners unaccustomed to such drawings to judge the pros and cons of specific packages, and in some cases it was not possible to judge what changes should be made. Finally, major cost and time were required to fabricate clay models, prototype vehicles, etc., leading to conservative tendencies in vehicle planning.
The device set forth in JP 07-271289 does enable vehicle planning from the standpoint of intuitive evaluation by an evaluator on board a vehicle, but has the problem that it does not allow vehicle planning through a comprehensive evaluation of vehicle packaging, external appearance, and the like.
On the other hand, the technology set forth in JP 2004-042747 permits vehicle planning to be advanced through a comprehensive evaluation of the vehicle package, external appearance, and the like. However, the vehicle modeling described above is built from 3D model data, and because of the extremely large amount of such data, long processing times are sometimes needed for displaying each model. Also, while the vehicle designer can more easily perceptually sense the vehicle through the 3D display of each model, there were also aspects in which seasoned vehicle designers accustomed to conventional drawings displayed two-dimensionally had difficulty grasping the vehicle image concretely. Moreover, the three dimensional nature of the display could make it difficult to discern which point on the displayed model should be changed when seeking to change the shape of a model by dragging a mouse, etc. on a screen, as when changing a roof height, for example. It was sometimes also difficult to achieve shape changes exactly like those in the image.
Also, in the technology set forth in JP 2004-042747, vehicle planning is normally carried out by displaying a vehicle model on a flat screen (for example, see FIG. 2). However, individual models are displayed as images, so even if individual models are displayed three-dimensionally, it is difficult to grasp the relative distances of instrument panels, the roof, pillars, and the like with respect to passengers, and difficult to obtain a sense of the size of the space around passengers. The problem, in other words, was that one could not evaluate headroom by placing one's hand over one's head, or verify distances by extending one's hand around one as in an actual vehicle, or objectively evaluate such things as interior space, or movement space when getting in and out of the vehicle, or the passenger's sense of spatial constriction.
Also, in the technology set forth in JP 2004-042747, only one form of the vehicle model is displayed on the screen. This raised the problem that it was difficult for a vehicle planner to evaluate whether opposing factors such as interior comfort and external appearance were balanced. A process was adopted, therefore, whereby to determine roof height, for example, values within an acceptable numerical value range were repeatedly input and re-displayed. Comfort would improve but exterior appearance would degrade, and by repeating this evaluation the roof height would be raised in a way which balanced comfort with exterior appearance.
Here, the vehicle planning stage is the stage in which vehicle shape is gradually developed based on a new idea, as various opposing factors such as comfort and exterior appearance are balanced for a variety of parts of the vehicle. In the past, the continual repetition of such operations to change numerical values until a certain vehicle shape was achieved could be quite inefficient. It was particularly time-consuming to do this when many dimensions, and the like had to be simultaneously changed.
Also, in order to display a given single shape, numerical values must be set to a particular single value. At the vehicle planning stage, however, there are naturally parts with large dimensional tolerances, and when generating a new vehicle it is inconvenient to determine a single value. It is frequently meaningless, in other words, to assign specific values in mm values, for example, during the vehicle planning stage.
Moreover, in order to achieve a balance of various factors, for example when raising the roof to gain interior comfort, other operations such as matching the pillar angles may be required in order to ameliorate the degradation in external appearance which accompanies a change in roof height. In the vehicle planning stage, that type of operation is carried out for a variety of parts of the vehicle to gradually create an overall form of the vehicle.
During this process, seasoned vehicle designers will have know-how in proportion to their experience which teaches them, for example, that pillar angles must be changed when raising a roof height, as described above. In other words, the solution to one problem in the vehicle planning stage often raises other problems, but experienced designers have a range of know-how which allows them to simultaneously solve newly presented corollary problems as they solve the original problem. Such experienced designers can therefore proceed efficiently with vehicle planning as they simultaneously adjust multiple locations on the vehicle.
On the other hand, when planning a vehicle based on a new idea there are cases in which an inexperienced designer can plan a more original vehicle, being unfettered by conventional vehicle planning concepts. However, when an inexperienced designer raises the roof height for interior comfort, for example, he or she will notice the resulting degraded external appearance. This can often be followed by several iterations of trial and error, readjusting the roof height, adjusting various parts such as the belt line or pillar angle, etc. The problem, in other words, was that a large amount of time was spent solving the other problems created by the solution to the first problem.
The aforementioned experienced designer's know-how frequently stems from unavoidable design requirements or from human engineering ideals. The results of the inexperienced designer's trial and error are therefore frequently similar to the adjustments made by the experienced designer based on know-how. It would seem that vehicle planning could be more efficiently advanced if inexperienced designers could take advantage of experienced designers' know-how. The ability to take advantage of experience designers' know-how in vehicle planning has therefore been sought.
In this regard, there has been much reliance on experienced designers' know-how in the conventional vehicle planning method based on drawings. The technology disclosed in JP 2004-042747 does not include a method for taking advantage of such expert know-how.